Its feet firmly planted in the ’70s, Disco Inferno is a musical that will blast you back into the past, to those heady days when making the big time was the aim of anyone who could shuffle to a beat or hold a note.

Disco Inferno is a London nightclub where Jack clears glasses. He dreams of fame and fortune, and is offered it all by Lady Marmalade, the devil’s right-hand lady, in exchange for his soul. On his 21st birthday he goes through with the deal and, under Lady Marmalade’s direction, hits the big time overnight. However, he learns that achieving success is not without its pitfalls – his friends soon tire of his superstardom and things fall apart with his lady-love, Jane. A run-in with someone from his past, finally teaches him what is most important in life.

The musical is being staged by the HK Youth Arts Foundation in November. Director of the show, Lindsey McAlister is visibly excited about the project and understandably so – the musical is the foundation’s big event of the year and has been in the works for the last six months. The process started with auditions in May, and then rehearsals began in September, continuing right up until show time. Because of renovations at the Shouson Theatre, where the foundation stages a musical annually, the cast is much smaller than in previous years – only 40 kids in comparison to the usual 80 or so. McAlister says such a cut was unfortunate, but it allowed her to push the cast harder.

As Corinna Chamberlain, who plays Lady Marmalade, puts it: “There’s been a lift in standards this year. We’ve been pushed to work harder and do more than in previous years, so I’m expecting a better show than we’ve had before.”

The principal cast is mostly made up of 16 to 17-year-olds, all of whom have busy schedules with school and other activities. But they have put a lot of effort into making sure their audience will enjoy the show. And they’ve got a lot out of the teamwork that has gone into producing Disco Inferno.

“We put a lot of time into it, and sometimes we lose sleep because we’ve got school, exams and other activities but it’s worth it. You get to meet so many different people from different schools and we have fun as a cast… I hope people will be impressed by our acting and dancing skills,” says Steven Ward who plays Jack’s friend Tom.
Although Disco Inferno is not a very well-known musical, McAlister is confident audiences will take to it: “The danger with doing something new and different is that maybe nobody has heard about it… But people can relate to that era, and now it’s very retro. It comes across as a sexy, interesting project and something the kids can get into while adults can reminisce with the music.”

Part of the foundation’s appeal is that it is open to anyone interested in exploring their artistic side, a policy which carries over in the belief that productions should cater for as varied an audience
as possible. So the English script has been
adapted to include a lot of Cantonese to attract a wide Hong Kong audience. The cast are quick to
point out that audience members who only speak
one language will not have difficulty understanding the show as all the important parts are explained in both languages.

Not everybody will remember the ‘70s with fondness, but the cast is determined that nobody will go away from Disco Inferno dissatisfied – except perhaps Old Nick, the devil himself.